Posted by Andy BenoitAnother injury has struck the Tampa Bay Buccaneers: wide receiver Arrelious Benn has been placed on injured reserve with a torn knee ligament. This news comes as little surprise to those who saw the second-round rookie go down, slam his helmet and dejectedly leave the field on a cart against the Seahawks Sunday.

Benn had been a slow work in progress this season, though he had a four-catch, 122-yard breakout performance against the Redskins in Week 14. He finished his rookie year with 25 catches for 395 yards.

It was not disclosed what specific ligament Benn hurt. Thus, his status for this upcoming offseason is unclear.

Because the Bucs like to keep Sammie Stroughter in the slot, it’s possible that return artist Michael Spurlock could replace as the No. 2 starter outside.

The Bucs will once again be without starting offensive linemen Jeff Faine (quad) and Jeremy Trueblood (knee). Also missing is fullback Earnest Graham, which is noteworthy because his lead-blocking abilities fit perfectly in what has become a strict power run approach for this offense. Wideout Sammie Stroughter did not practice all week due to a foot injury. Thus, rookie Arrelious Benn has a chance to start carving out a true niche in this offense (Benn caught a 53-yard touchdown pass last week, but that’s basically been the extent of his contributions).

The Falcons likely will not have OLB Sean Weatherspoon; the first-round rookie has been out since Week 5 with a knee injury. Fullback Ovie Mughelli is questionable with a hamstring. That’s crucial because Atlanta’s best approach against this Tampa Bay D is to pound them between the tackles on the ground.

Does Drew Brees have a fractured knee and torn meniscus or not? The Saints are saying no – in fact, Brees is not even listed on the injury report. Running backs Reggie Bush and Pierre Thomas are both still out (Bush is technically listed as doubtful this week). Rookie CB Patrick Robinson is out with an ankle, though the Panthers do not have the aerial firepower to take advantage anyway. Besides, both Saints starting corners, Tracy Porter and Jabari Greer, who missed the Steeler game, are probable after practicing all week.

No Shaun O’Hara for New York. Thus, Adam Koets, who has decent movement skills but lacks O’Hara’s nastiness and veteran shrewdness at the second level in the run game, will be the fulcrum of the offensive line. The Giants are coming off a bye, which explains why basically everyone else (save for OT Will Beatty and FB Madison Hedgecock) is healthy.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers addressed their wide receiver issues (or, at the very least, attempted to address those issues) in the draft: taking Arrelious Benn and Mike Williams in the second and fourth rounds, respectively. Williams and Benn are both quite talented: whether they work out in the long run, of course, is yet to be determined.

But it sure does seem like they're going to get a chance to play -- Williams, in particular, is getting run with the starters after a "dynamic" offseason for the Bucs. Sayeth head coach Raheem Morris:

"He's a big, tall, fast guy who can go out there and make plays, and right now he's running with the ones. So he'll have an opportunity to go out there and prove himself in the preseason. Depth charts don't come out until we play Cleveland (the first regular-season game). But right now, he's running with the ones (first team), and he's having a ball and his teammates are having a ball with him."

Morris also pointed to Sammie Stroughter as a guy who'll spend some time at the "X position" and cautioned that it wasn't fair to compare Williams to Benn, at least in the sense of Benn being drafted first (and therefore having theoretically higher expectations).

Williams is an interesting case, because he has tons of talent, obviously. But he quit the Syracuse team in 2009 when it appeared he might be suspended ... following his suspension for the entire 2008 season.

As Sean Keeley said this morniing , if you're a Syracuse fan, you should go ahead and prepare yourself for a discussion of "misunderstandings" while he was at Syracuse. If you're a Bucs fan, well, you'll probably end up being a little bit less upset, provided Williams can keep his head on straight and handle the pressures of being a starting rookie wide receiver in the NFL.

Since, well, you go ahead and look at that roster and tell me who's beating him out for the job. In all seriousness, though, Williams and Benn are a pair of guys that, if they pan out the way Tampa hopes they will, could form with Josh Freeman to create a pretty formidable offensive core.

Just days after finally signing his RFA tender, Packers defensive lineman Johnny Jolly was excused from the mandatory minicamp (June 21-23) so that he could focus on his legal issues. Jolly has a felony drug trial in Texas (he’s facing up to 20 years in prison, but not the death penalty) on July 30. That happens to be the day the Packers report to training camp.

Speaking of the Packers, turns out Tramon Williams actually accepted his tender before the deadline after all. The Packers were just waiting to receive the paperwork.

Bears tight end Brandon Manumaleuna is coming back from arthroscopic knee surgery. The hope is that he’ll be ready for training camp. Manumaleuna is new to town but, having played for the Rams, already understands Mike Martz’s system.

The Broncos signed former Chiefs running back Kolby Smith today, which means you can rule out the idea of Brian Westbrook going to Denver. The 5’11”, 219-pound Smith will compete with J.J. Arrington (coming off a serious knee injury) for the No. 3 job. Smith’s problem is that he’s not a very physical presence between the tackles.

Patriots DE Ty Warren eschewed offseason workouts (and a $250,000 bonus) to go back to Texas A & M and get his degree this past offseason. Normally these stories stop being interesting after the headline, but Shalise Manza Young of Boston.com offers a fun read on Warren’s story.

Bucs WR Sammie Stroughter has been taking some reps at the outside position lately, but still, you can expect him to spend most of 2010 in the slot. That’s where Stroughter’s fluidity and quickness will be most effective. Plus, the Bucs just drafted two 6’1”, 215-pound wideouts to fill the starting spots (Arrelious Benn, second round; Mike Williams, fourth round).